Trans came to Sea City and left in a hurry again. The scheduled meeting was postponed time and again. Lu Yuezhi didn’t pry, but she sensed Trans’s optimism about Su Yiqui from their relaxed attitude.
The fact that they trusted her enough to let her lead a team in collaborating with Deyounian, without needing constant oversight from the original supervisor, showed that Su Yiqui’s abilities were indeed impressive.
Thinking rationally, this was good for Xiao Luyan too. Having an incompetent partner would have been the real disaster.
But right now, she couldn’t stay rational, because a tipsy Xiao Luyan had grabbed her so urgently just to talk about Su Yiqui!
Lu Yuezhi’s expression darkened a bit, but when she looked at Xiao Luyan, her heart couldn’t help but skip a beat.
Tonight’s Xiao Luyan was stunningly beautiful, the kind of beauty that made one fall at a single extra glance. Her carefully applied makeup added a touch of softness and vibrancy compared to before. With the faint flush on her cheeks and the subtle haze of intoxication, every gesture exuded captivating charm.
Lu Yuezhi glanced at the hand still gripped tightly in hers and found she couldn’t muster any anger.
Seeing her fall silent, Xiao Luyan gently shook her hand. “Did you hear what I said?”
There was an unknowing urgency in her voice, along with a hint of annoyance.
Lu Yuezhi couldn’t keep a straight face and said helplessly, “And then?”
Seeing her perfunctory attitude again, Xiao Luyan wanted to emphasize the importance of the matter.
“I’ve looked into the team Su Yiqui brought this time. Their business capabilities are truly strong. Especially hers—she’s on a very high level.”
Lu Yuezhi took a deep breath and slowly looked away.
She didn’t want to see Xiao Luyan earnestly praising Su Yiqui. She would get jealous, eat vinegar, want to bite someone.
Xiao Luyan felt a bit dizzy, unsure if it was the alcohol, fatigue, or frustration at Lu Yuezhi’s indifference.
“Someone she looks favorably on will have many more opportunities in this field in the future. Especially for newcomers—if they can have her guidance and leadership, their starting point will definitely be worlds apart.”
She didn’t want to sound so harsh, but that was how the industry worked. She’d seen many artists who lived in poverty their whole lives yet clung to their dreams, and while she admired them, she couldn’t help but sigh.
But she didn’t want that for Lu Yuezhi. She didn’t want Lu Yuezhi to waste her prime years fumbling in the dark, her talent buried and overlooked until some belated recognition years later.
She wanted Lu Yuezhi to shine early.
Lu Yuezhi had no mind to puzzle out what Xiao Luyan meant by “newcomer.” She just wanted to end this topic quickly. But when she turned her head, those eyes that could suck away her entire soul flickered with hidden urgency.
“Why the rush?” Lu Yuezhi said helplessly, but she couldn’t stop the sour note in her voice.
“How could I not be in a rush!” Xiao Luyan got a little angry, feeling like she’d worried so much while Lu Yuezhi didn’t care at all.
The intoxication surged, and she realized belatedly that she’d drunk too much.
No! While she still had one last shred of sobriety, she had to hurry and finish saying it.
“Yuezhi, listen to me. Tonight, I asked her, and there’s a…”
Before she could finish, Xiao Luyan was silenced.
A scorching heat pressed against her lips, sealed tightly by Lu Yuezhi. Xiao Luyan froze, her mind going blank.
They had kissed before, more than once. But one this solid, pressed so tightly, was a first.
She could feel Lu Yuezhi’s urgency, her forcefulness, even a dominance that hadn’t been there in previous kisses—all of it imprinted deeply and vividly on her lips.
The drunken haze was instantly suppressed, but her body gradually lost its strength. The kiss grew hotter and hotter, igniting her along with Lu Yuezhi’s blazing breath.
Xiao Luyan was stunned for a moment, then slowly raised her hand and hooked it around Lu Yuezhi’s nape.
For the first time, she wanted to respond to the kiss.
Lu Yuezhi really couldn’t stand hearing Su Yiqui’s name repeated from Xiao Luyan’s mouth over and over. She knew she shouldn’t get mad, but she couldn’t control it.
When she lost her composure, she just wanted to block the source immediately!
No more listening! She wanted Xiao Luyan to forget Su Yiqui for the moment!
After truly kissing her, she was stunned too. She hadn’t expected her brain to short-circuit and actually go through with it anyway, but the wonderful sensation made her whole body burn.
Her scalp tingled wave after wave, far more intense than at the wedding banquet.
Her mind hadn’t fully cleared when weight added to her nape. When those hands entwined there tugged her forward with slight force, Lu Yuezhi’s rationality had already gone negative.
She no longer had the time or capacity to analyze if this was right or wrong—she just wanted to entwine deeply with those soft, enticing lips.
Scorching breaths tangled together; the obvious scent of alcohol was indistinguishable as to whose was stronger.
Lu Yuezhi’s originally dangling hand unconsciously shifted upward slightly, supporting the soft slim waist, then slowly moved to the back amid their entwined embrace and kiss.
The beautifully textured butterfly bones were even more alluring under tonight’s evening gown, and Lu Yuezhi thought the feel was incredible. Her palm’s temperature soared, sparks flying wherever it passed.
Xiao Luyan felt it tickle and burn; she twisted lightly a few times. The palm against her back was warm and restless, yet carried a strong reluctance to let go as it stroked.
Urgent yet devout.
She sank once more into this one-of-a-kind immersion. At this moment, she felt like she was Lu Yuezhi’s entire world.
Her hair got mussed from the rubbing, even pricking her ears slightly. The messy sting brought Lu Yuezhi back to a sliver of sobriety.
And Xiao Luyan’s soft low hum from her throat brought back her mind.
What had she just done? She’d forcibly kissed her! Lu Yuezhi desperately steadied her mind and pulled back the impulse.
She slowed down, and Xiao Luyan naturally followed suit.
Their lips parted slowly, with a lingering thread of connection that hadn’t quite broken.
Lu Yuezhi didn’t dare look at her, but the aftertaste on her lips left her heart in chaos.
Xiao Luyan panted lightly, her ears hot enough to smoke. When Lu Yuezhi suddenly stopped, she thought it was for a breath, a rest.
But after a while, nothing followed.
She was still a bit greedy for the earlier warmth, even wanting to savor the fiery heat on her back. But getting her to say outright that she wanted more was too hard!
Taking advantage of her slight tipsiness, she decided to go with the flow. Xiao Luyan’s eyes misted over a bit, her expression dazed. The hand hooked on Lu Yuezhi’s nape tightened again, wanting to pull her back.
Sure enough, Lu Yuezhi was obedient. With just a slight tug, that breath returned as promised.
Xiao Luyan slowly closed her eyes, waiting to be burned by the heat once more.
But the temperature on her lips cooled bit by bit; the expected scorching heat didn’t come.
Lu Yuezhi thought Xiao Luyan was too drunk—why else would she pull her to continue? It was completely unlike Xiao Luyan’s usual style and made her seem unserious.
She was the one who’d kissed forcibly, the one whose hands had wandered restlessly. Lu Yuezhi already regretted her earlier impulse. Though she wanted to continue a million times over, she didn’t want to lose more points.
If they kept kissing, wouldn’t she be taking advantage of her vulnerability?
Very reluctant, but they couldn’t continue now! Lu Yuezhi’s brain struggled to turn, slowly pulling them apart.
The lip thread finally snapped. As it broke, Lu Yuezhi felt her chin itch a bit, but all she wanted was to wipe clean the mark on the same spot on Xiao Luyan.
She swallowed hard a few times and steadied her voice. “You’re drunk. Go rest first.”
Xiao Luyan didn’t speak.
Lu Yuezhi looked at her and only saw long lashes fluttering a bit faster.
Her emotions hadn’t fully settled yet, but her mind was full of Xiao Luyan, leaving no room to dwell on Su Yiqui.
When she spoke again, the sourness had faded a lot. “We can talk about Su Yiqui tomorrow just the same.”
She thought that after a bit more mental preparation, she probably wouldn’t feel so irritated.
Xiao Luyan felt limp all over now; the drunkenness and fatigue had been infinitely amplified by the hot kiss. She really had no mood to talk about Su Yiqui anymore.
But she didn’t want to look at Lu Yuezhi either.
This person had actually rejected her invitation for another kiss—what did that mean?
A bit annoyed, a bit uneasy, Xiao Luyan felt her head ache and didn’t want to think further.
Lu Yuezhi probed, “Go to sleep first, okay?”
“Mm.”
Xiao Luyan swayed as she tried to stand, discovering even her waist was soft.
Lu Yuezhi steadied her in time, worriedly saying, “I’ll help you in.”
Xiao Luyan lowered her gaze, still not looking at her much.
She helped Xiao Luyan sit on the edge of the bed; her figure-hugging evening gown was still on. Lu Yuezhi originally wanted to ask if she needed help, but thinking of how she’d groped her back for so long earlier, a wave of heat hit her.
Feeling embarrassed, she decided not to mention it. “Don’t shower tonight. Safety first.”
Xiao Luyan nodded. “You sleep early too.”
Seeing her like this, Lu Yuezhi couldn’t bear to keep her talking. She watched silently for a moment, then said gently, “Good night.”
“Good night.”
Lu Yuezhi gently closed the door. Only then did Xiao Luyan truly raise her head.
The evening gown felt restrictive and uncomfortable on her body. She took out sleepwear and changed right there by the bed.
In her current state, showering wasn’t suitable; she felt a bit dizzy. But the sticky feeling prevented her from sleeping peacefully, so she went to the bathroom and changed her undergarments.
No matter how blurry her drunken eyes were, she could clearly see that this time’s marks were even more obvious than last time.
She stared blankly at herself in the mirror, lost in thought.
After a moment, she slowly turned around and undid the buttons of her sleepwear. The butterfly bones appeared perfectly in the mirror, smooth and flawless.
But she clearly felt like her back had been scorched so much, so deeply—there should have been so many imprints.
Dizziness hit again. Xiao Luyan gave the mirror one last deep look.
The next day when she woke, Xiao Luyan didn’t rush to get up. She recalled last night’s events, and the feeling of kissing Lu Yuezhi hadn’t faded.
It hadn’t been a dream, but the impression lingered vividly upon waking.
She couldn’t help analyzing Lu Yuezhi’s actions at the time. She’d kissed her so urgently, so passionately—that showed she still had considerable appeal to her. It slightly dispelled her earlier doubts.
Lately, she’d felt Lu Yuezhi pulling back noticeably, a deliberate coolness. She no longer charged forward without reservation like before, no longer threw herself in heedlessly; she seemed very cautious.
But her care and concern hadn’t diminished. That night at Xinran Cafe, they’d talked for so long, and the tenderness in Lu Yuezhi’s eyes couldn’t be faked.
Lu Yuezhi had changed a bit, but not completely. Xiao Luyan craved the warmth she gave, yet couldn’t help worrying about her retreat.
Last night’s kiss gave her a bit of new confidence.
And she admitted she’d quite enjoyed it. So this was what a real kiss felt like. She compared it to her previous practice sessions—maybe she’d been too tense then, or hadn’t really wanted to interact, so it was purely the physical sensation of contact.
But when heartbeats danced along with it, the feeling was entirely different.
Xiao Luyan savored it. She convinced herself once more: Since she’d chosen this arranged marriage, why be so restrained? Fully immersing herself might actually make things easier.
